The Immortal and the God
by Spookflower
Summary: Sparking the interest of Nick Fury after a death defying escape, Ellie Gray is brought into SHIELD and meets our favourite God. LokixOc. Rated M for language.
1. Chapter 1

"I wish you wouldn't do that", Laura narrowed her eyes at her friend Ellie.

"Do what?" Ellie raised an eyebrow as she bent her right index finger back, hearing the satisfying snap of her knuckles.

"Gross" Laura replied, shuddering at the noise.

"It could be so much worse, I could do this..." Ellie bent her finger further and further back, grinning gleefully at her best friend.

"Stop! Jeez!" Laura turned so her back was to Ellie, she was starving hungry, perusing the menu in the pub and was in no mood for Ellie's... peculiarities. Ellie shook her head, chuckling at her friends squeamishness. Given that the two women had been friends for years now, it was amusing that Laura was still freaked out by Ellie's special talents.

Ellie Gray slouched back in her seat, her hazel eyes took on a sheen of sadness for a second. She was careful to smile brightly at Laura when she looked up at her from the menu, asking Ellie if they did cheesey chips here, but she couldn't shake the melancholia. Never could. It made sense if you cared to learn Ellie Gray's birthday, which was the 3rd of March, this made her a piscean, the emotional star sign in straightforward astrology, if you believed in that sort of thing.

The bit that wasn't straight forward was the year of her birth. Ellie had been present at the start of the industrial revolution, she had witnessed the sinking of the Titanic and she had watched man land on the moon.

She knew that she shouldn't keep making these friends, like Laura, but she couldn't help it. Their lives were so beautiful and quick, so sharp in their focus and they gleamed with vitality that she had long lacked. She had been friends with Laura since Laura was 19. At the time, Ellie was pretending to be 22, a year older than she had been when she had stopped aging. It was getting to the inevitable point in Ellie's friendships, the point where her friends started to remark more and more on her youthful appearance, when joking replies about having good Italian blood, or a good skincare routine started to feel a little strained.

It wouldn't be long now, she would have ten more years with Laura, at the most. A 28 year old with the skin of a 21 year old was believable, but a 38 year old? Too much. It was such a shame, she loved Laura like a sister and could honestly say of all the friends she had collected over the years, it would be Laura who would be one of the most missed. In years to come, when she stood towards the back of Laura's funeral, or under the trees by her graveside, watching her body committed to the earth, the tears would fall with fierce abandon.

It was only after Laura had kicked her in the shin, that Ellie realised she hadn't replied to Laura's question.

"Sorry, cheesey chips? Yes, my dear, I think they do" Ellie took a quick gulp of her drink, while Laura eyed her friend suspiciously.

"What?"

"You do a lot of that nowadays," Laura observed, the quiet music in the pub seemed to quieten further as Ellie fixed a smile that said 'What on earth do you mean?'

"You know what I mean" Laura replied to the unasked question. "Staring off into the middle distance like you're in a period drama."

"Oh shut up, I do not!" Ellie waved her hand dismissively.

"Do" Laura replied curtly, grabbing her friends hand quickly.

"You can tell me if something is bothering you, y'know. I'm always here for you"

"Thank you, but really, nothing's wrong." Ellie halted the line of questioning, releasing her hand from Laura's and looked down at her menu. Laura took her cue and looked down at her own, the girls sat in amicable silence.

* * *

Ellie closed the door and placed her keys on the side board. She stepped away from the door before rethinking this and grabbing the keys again. She entered the hallway of her apartment block and wrinkled her nose at the smell of someone cooking on one of the upper floors. She had begun to contemplate how she was going to leave things with Laura. Where she would go next, maybe this time she could leave an address and extend the friendship for just that little bit longer. Maybe Laura would be the last. _A walk will help me think,_ It hurt more each time she had to leave them, Ellie wasn't sure if she could take this empty feeling again.

_Can't take it again?_ She thought to herself, _it's not like you really have a choice, no checking out for you my dear. _Ellie told herself that she had come to terms with what she was a long time ago, but truth be told, on nights like this, she realised that her acceptance was shaky at best. She had tried rationalising her condition, she had tried denying it, she had tried thinking of it as a long, drawn out punishment or nightmare, as a purgatory for her sins._  
_

Ellie Gray can't die. Ellie Gray can't be killed. Ellie Gray isn't alive, but a parody of life. She couldn't explain it, there was no deal with the devil, there was no accident or heavenly visitor that bestowed this curse on her. Her last name wasn't even Gray, but she had adopted the surname after reading Oscar Wilde's "The Portrait of Dorian Gray", thinking that perhaps she had met Oscar Wilde in the past, as his rendering of the tortured immortal Dorian had so many shades of herself. She was not a good person, at least, she hadn't been in the past. She could be cruel, mean spirited, spiteful and vindictive. She had been of questionable morals, hurting people just to see what happened, trying thing just to see how they felt and she had spent the best part of one hundred years trying to fix the flaws in her character.

Ellie was 5'2'' if she stood ram rod straight, she had black hair that fell just past her shoulders. She was curvaceous, as had been the desired shape of a woman in her youth, it amused her to watch fashions change and her hourglass silhouette fall in and out of vogue. She used to try to follow fashion, in order to better fit in with others, but had soon realised the futility of her actions. She attempted every now and then to adopt changes in language, and most of her living friends had thought her mix of old English and new slang was a charming personality quirk. Ellie wrapped her scarf a little tighter around her face as the September wind rushed around a corner, chilling her face. Thunder rumbled in the distance somewhere, and Ellie quickened her pace.

New York was pretty this time of year, the leaves had started to turn and lined the streets gutters in browns and reds. She looked up at Stark tower, right near the Empire State Building, _what a_ _monstrosity. _Rain began to splatter the sidewalk, and Ellie decided it was time to go back home.

Nick Fury leafed through the file with keen interest. _An immortal, how useful, _although the girl looked small and fragile, Fury thought back to last year, when the destroyer that Loki of Asgard had sent had leveled a small town, before his brother Thor had managed to defeat it. In the wreckage, Thor had promised Phil Coulson, a SHIELD agent, that he was now an ally of Earth and everyone had been watching the demi god in awe. Not Nick Fury, who was observing from one of the cars, he had been watching a small girl emerge from the wreckage, dust herself off and promptly walk out of town, not wishing to be seen. Nick Fury always noticed the small details, that was why he was the best at what he did and since that day, he had been tracking that small detail, eager for her special talents to be harnessed by SHIELD.

* * *

Fury's interest in the girl stemmed from the fact that she seemed indestructible, the pile of rubble she had emerged from last year should have killed her, but she was unscathed. After much searching for reports of seemingly immortal people, Fury had found a newspaper article, detailing a physician from London's account of a black haired girl that had stormed into his office, slicing her arm with a knife and demanding to know why she wouldn't die. It was reported that the girl had cut her arms for several hours without any ill effects, she never bled dry, she never passed out, she didn't die. Following the girl's story, Fury had reached a dead end once the girl had been reported to be in the care of Bethlem Royal Hospital, known more widely as Bedlam mental asylum. Once here, Ellie had managed to escape and there had been no sign of her since, the only remnant of her existence was an artists rendering of a small black haired girl, eyes filled with confusion and rage.

Agent Clint Barton knocked on Fury's open office door and entered, his eyes quickly scanning the documents strewn on the desk of his superior.

"Yes, Barton?"

"Sir, We found her"

* * *

"You're a sucker for cheekbones." Laura shook her head at Ellie's predictable 'type'.

"I can't help myself!" Ellie laughed as they exited the cinema.

"Just give you a bad boy with cheekbones you could cut your hand on and you're just away aren't you?"

"Pretty much, my friend, pretty much". Ellie replied as Laura unlocked her car and they got in.

"I enjoyed tonight" Ellie smiled as she turned to look at her friend,_ how many more times like this with you will I have?_ Ellie pushed the unpleasant thought away,

"Me too", Laura smiled back, starting the engine.

It was only when Laura screamed that Ellie realised they had pulled her out of the car. Watching her friend struggle, Ellie felt rooted to the chair for a second, before clawing her way out of the passenger door in a panic and running to her friends aid.

"LET GO OF ME! YOU FUCKING..." Laura's voice was cut short as a gloved hand covered her mouth. Ellie felt a pair of strong arms grab her from behind and lift her until her legs thrashed around a good few feet from the ground.

"LET GO OF HER! LEAVE HER ALONE YOU BASTARD!" Ellie let rip with a tirade of curses and oaths, trying to reach her friend, whose eyes were wide and frightened. She twisted and turned violently, trying and failing to get some sort of leverage against the strong man that held her in place.

"Shhhh... Sssshhhhhhhhh" The man soothed, making her more frantic, _I'm so sorry, I'm so very sorry Laura,_ if she could just get a bit of space, if she could just maneuver a little more, she could get to Laura and save her.

"You're just gonna hurt yourself if you keep struggling... You're just gonna..." The man's voice came again, cutting off abruptedly as he felt some of her lower ribs cracking under his pressure. She didn't seem to mind though, squirming all the more furiously now with the little leeway this had afforded her. Inhaling sharply, she managed to wriggle free, her knees hit the gravel of the car park as she fell to the floor, not bothering to get to her feet, Ellie scrambled to get to Laura's side. Laura managed to pull her mouth free for a second and pointed wildly behind Ellie, she screamed

"LOOK OUT!"

Ellie become acutely aware of the silence that had descended. She turned to face whatever was behind her, a man, tall and muscular, pointing a wickedly sharp looking arrow at her, about ten to fifteen feet away. Ellie went to take a step forward, the man pulled back the string on his bow, a determined and grim look on his face. Ellie stopped, taking the hint.

"Miss Gray, I have been sent to invite you to meet with Nick Fury, of SHIELD"

"SHIELD? What the fuck is SHIELD?"

"Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division, Mr Fury would just like to talk to you, if you come quietly now, I promise no harm will come to your friend."

"Shouldn't that be, no harm will come to me?" Ellie inquired, her eyes fixed on the arrow, ready to place herself between it and Laura. The archer smiled at Ellie knowingly.

"Miss Gray, I think we both know threatening you with death is a little redundant."

Ellie's countenance faltered. Laura couldn't know what she was, she couldn't ever know. Ellie was a friend that would disappear without a trace, leaving Laura with years of good memories, not leave Laura with questions she could never understand or answer.

"Ellie? Ellie what does he mean?" Laura's voice broke Ellie's train of thought and she looked up at the archer, hoping he wouldn't say much more.

"Nothing Laura, there has obviously been a mistake," Ellie didn't look back at her friend but heard her take a breath to argue this, not wishing to have the conversation now, not like this, Ellie continued to fix the archer with a glare.

"I'll come with you, Mr..."

"Agent Clint Barton"

"...Barton, but only if you let my friend go"

"Certainly", Clint Barton lowered his bow and made a quick gesture with his head. Ellie heard the scuffling sounds of Laura being pushed into her car, as Barton made his way over to a sleek black Mercedes, opening the back door and stepping aside he nodded curtly towards Ellie

"Shall we?"

* * *

The rain from earlier that evening made Ellie's short leather jacket squeak against the leather seats of the car. Clint Barton sat next to her, his bow occupying the other seat. Ellie looked ahead, keeping her eyes on the headrest of the passenger seat. Clint cleared his throat and Ellie could feel his eyes flick onto her every now and then, making sure she wasn't about to make any sudden movements.

"Would you like something to drink?" he asked, after what seemed like hours of travelling. Ellie's throat felt gritty and dry but she refused.

"No. It's probably poisoned" she answered, with a sideways glance at her travelling companion. A ghost of a smirk made Clint's features suddenly soften, making him appear friendly and affable, instead of his seemingly default grim scowl.

"Miss Gray, if we wanted to kill you, we would... actually, I don't know what we would do" he finished, shaking his head a little.

"I don't know either, is that what this is all about?"

"Your talents have been, noted." Clint replied, leaning away from her a little so he could evaluate her better. She was damn short, wearing a black leather jacket and a short black skirt, her eyes were the most curious aspect of her appearance. Without looking into them, he would have assumed the girl was in her late teens or early twenties, but her eyes betrayed her. They were a very very light brown, almost yellow in colour. They were old, wise, horrifying and fantastic all at the same time. They were sad at the same time as being feverish in their brightness. Her skin too, on closer inspection was frightening. It was almost too smooth, like a piece of waxed fruit. Clint turned away from her quickly before continuing.

"Mr Fury was present at your little accident last year, the incident in..."

"I know where you mean." Ellie cut him off mid sentence. She closed her eyes and turned her head towards the window, watching the city passing by.

"I've always been so careful..." she continued, eyes still closed. Her voice was barely above a whisper, so quiet that Clint wasn't even sure if her words were meant for him at all. He turned back to her, in time to see her quickly swipe at her eyes with the cuff of her coat.

"...It wasn't like I asked that pile of crap to fall on me. I didn't ask to get squished"

"And I'm sure you didn't mean Mr Fury to see you trying to flee the scene either, but the fact is he did. You have a very interesting and special skill, all Mr Fury and SHIELD is interested in is helping you to reach your full potential with that skill" Clint reeled off his speech, noticing her eyes studying his face, as if she was looking for a sign that he was being untruthful.

"Helping me in the way that I'm going to get needles stuck in me and thrown in a cage?" Ellie quickly relived a particularly nasty memory, Bedlam Asylum... _not again_.

"I'm sure that won't be the case" Clint replied. Focusing his gaze out the window for the remainder of the journey.


	2. Chapter 2

Ellie's first non conspiracy theory thought was that SHIELD Headquarters was huge.

So huge that she and Clint had been walking for twenty odd minutes and they still seemed no closer to their destination. She had thought a few times about trying to start up a conversation with him, but he was walking with this awful sense of purpose, like he was just about to launch into a jog, and she didn't want to knock him off his stride. So many computers, so many people, blurring into one.

Ellie was so busy looking around while trying to match Clint's pace she didn't realise he had stopped until her nose was mushed into his back.

"Ouch." she hissed, rubbing her nose and peering around Clint's body.

"Ellie Gray, this is Mr Nick Fury, the man who requested to meet you" Clint gestured towards the man in what seemed to be a deserted room. Importance seemed to ooze out of Nick Fury in waves. He was tall, wearing a a black long coat and had an intriguing eye patch. He cast an evaluative eye over Ellie as she stepped out from behind Clint. Ellie tilted her head up defiantly, refusing to be intimidated by this very intimidating man and this very intimidating situation.

"Miss Gray," Fury started simply, holding out his hand for her to shake. Ellie tentatively moved forward and shook it firmly.

"Mr Fury." She replied, looking back at Clint, who had silently disappeared from the room.

"I suppose you're wondering what this is all about? I suppose you're also quite upset with us for scaring your friend earlier."

"Yes."

"Did you notice how I didn't say "for scaring *you* and your friend, Ellie? And did you mean to slip up when you didn't correct me on that and just answered with a simple yes?" Fury started to circle the small girl, who stood stock still, but Fury could tell by the set of her jaw that she was mentally berating herself for the mistake.

"You did... scare me"

"I find that hard to believe, Miss Gray, I find it hard to believe that anyone like you, with your talent, with your... gift, could be afraid of anything."

"I don't know what you mean, Mr Fury. All I know is that your overgrown bullies jumped me and my friend and scared us both to death and..."

"Don't toy with me, Miss Gray. I saw you, last summer, crawling out from a ton of brick and concrete that should have crushed you. Don't play innocent with me, don't lie to me and don't treat me as if I am a fool. These are the only three things I will ask of you while you are working here."

"Working... here? What?" Ellie's eyebrows drew together in a face that was so confused, it would have been comical to Fury if the situation wasn't so serious.

"We have need of you, of your skill, here at SHIELD"

"I don't understand what use you would have for me..."

"We have a person in custody who... does not play well with others."

"Still, not getting how I come into this?"

"We need someone to go in there and talk to him. Everyone we have sent in so far has been... hurt."

"Woah, hang on a minute..."

"Miss Gray, this would make a lot more sense if I showed you what I meant."

* * *

Nick Fury and Ellie Gray entered into a huge room, in the middle of the huge room was what looked like a glass chamber. In the glass chamber was a very pissed off looking man. He had black shoulder length hair, he was very tall and looked lean but muscular, however, as Ellie noted, that could have been the armour he was wearing that made him appear that way.

"Meet Loki." Fury gestured towards the glass chamber.

"Huh, I had a cat called Loki, we named him after the..."

"God of mischief?"

"Yeah. Um... " Ellie looked at Fury, and he nodded at her and looked back at the chamber.

"..Wha? You're not trying to imply that this is..."

"Loki, the God of mischief? Yes, yes I am"

At the mention of his name, Loki looked up, fixing his gaze on the small girl standing next to Fury. She didn't look like one of SHIELD. She looked like a child.

"Ahhh... You brought me a snack?" Loki's grin was like a slit throat, awful, frightening but completely captivating at the same time.

"Ummm", Ellie looked everywhere except straight into his eyes.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N I think I should probably say, this story is an alternate timeline to the Avengers film, hence why Hawkeye is not under Loki's control (or is he? MWAHAHAHA), All the Avengers will show up later on. Just so I don't get excommunicated from the Avengers fandom or something.**

"You brought me a shy one, Fury... How noble of you to throw this gentle little lamb in here, with me" Loki smiled again, talking to Fury but directing his steely gaze straight towards Ellie.

Ellie felt the Ellie of old stirring, somewhere behind the eyes. The beast was close to the surface after that comment. _Lamb? _If that was what this pompous idiot wanted to believe she was, she would let him. She would let him think he was oh so very clever and witty. It had always served Ellie in the past to keep her cards very close to her chest. Until she understood why she was here and what was expected of her she could pretend to be the little girl lost.

"What's your name child?" Loki came closer to the glass to inspect her.

"Ellie, what's yours?" She was careful to add a childish ghost of a lisp to her speech, giving him the satisfaction that his first impression of her as a helpless girl had been correct.

"I am Loki, recently of Asgard, but as of a few months ago, resident of this charming domicile you call Earth" Loki smirked as he glanced towards Nick Fury

"You asked me if I wanted a magazine, Mr. Fury, and I was quite insulted. This new entertainment you have offered to me is far more appealing" Loki let his eyes travel over her body.

Ellie wanted to wretch. He was attractive, in that really smarmy way that she hated. It took more than a pinch of self control for her to play along and bat her eyelashes at him.

"I think I would enjoy a little talk with Ellie. I think you would enjoy talking to me too, wouldn't you Ellie? Hmmm?" Loki stepped away from the glass and sat on the floor. He patted the floor beside him.

"I think, I would like to get freshened up first, Loki. I wouldn't want to stink out your... Umm... apartment?"

Loki leaned back on his hands, stretching out his long legs luxuriously like a cat in the summer sun.

"As you wish, little lamb"

* * *

"That went as well as could be expected, maybe a little better" Fury's mouth was set with determination.

"That's what you call went well?" Ellie remarked as they turned a corner.

"He thinks you're helpless, you can use that to our advantage."

"Our advantage? Mr Fury, I really think I need to know what's happening here? If you don't mind?" The last part of the sentence contained enough sarcasm to make Fury stop and turn to the small girl.

"Do you remember last summer? The pile of mortar and bricks that should have ground you into pieces?"

"Well, It's a little hard to forget"

"The cause of that building falling? Do you remember that?"

"Yes. A big fuck off machine man. I get that you dig my inability to get flattened, but I'm at a loss as to what that has to do with that sleaze in that glass room."

"The person that disabled said 'machine man' was Thor Odinson of Asgard. Loki's brother, or adoptive brother."

"Still clueless" Ellie shrugged and crossed her arms.

"We have it on good authority, that the person that sent the Destroyer was Loki."

"Look, Sir... Unless you're going to start explaining precisely why I should give a flying fuck..."

"If a person sends an almost indestructible machine, made of alien technology to kill someone he has grown up with all his life, what lengths do you believe he might go to if he set his sights on taking over, oh... I don't know... taking over Earth? What mercy do you think he will show the mortals which you hold in such high regard? The mortals that you love? Laura for example? What do you think he would do..."

Fury bent his head close to Ellie's so his words became a conspiratorial whisper

"What do you think he would do to Laura, if I gave him her address, told him where to find her."

Ellie stood very still. Fury's breathing was the only noise in the room.

"Surely letting him out to kill my friend would defeat the idea of imprisoning him? So you would let him out just so he could go and hurt Laura, what do you expect him to do? Come creeping quietly back afterwards? Your threat is completely empty."

"Loki *will* escape" Fury's voice took on a threatening edge.

"Who is to say that if you don't complete the task I ask you to do, I may have a little word in Loki's ear, about where he can find Laura, and you. He could cut you into a million pieces and you probably wouldn't feel it, but her? I have a feeling she wouldn't be walking away from that one"

Ellie glared at him and uncrossed her arms. Clicking her neck loudly she broke eye contact with Fury before asking,

"What is it you want me to do?"

* * *

"Ellie" Loki purred as she entered the room.

"Loki" she replied, walking towards his prison.

"Couldn't stay away too long I see, I trust you feel better after bathing?"

"Yes. I do, thank you" Ellie turned to the door, nodding her head towards the two way mirror. A small gap opened and she quickly slipped through, not giving Loki enough time to make an escape.

"Very clever, a little gap. Just small enough for a human girl and not quite big enough for a God" Loki's smile had become oddly terse.

"I think you could have escaped, if you wanted t-..." she whispered, allowing him to circle her in a predatory manner.

"...And I think you are a good deal more intelligent than you are letting on" Loki interrupted her.

Ellie smiled a tight, thin smile at him.

"Loki, they want to know why you allowed yourself to be captured, why you haven't attempted an escape. They want to know what you want."

"What... I want" Loki continued to circle her, his hand ran up her arm and she could have sworn he touched her thigh.

"I'm not going to be thrown off by you trying to seduce me Loki."

The smile on his face disapeared, like someone had pulled the plug on him.

"Don't flatter yourself child, I come from a place where women of far superior beauty to yourself throw themselves at my feet."

Ellie didnt say anything, _Obviously this tactic isn't going to work. _If she was honest with herself, she wasn't sure sure had even been using a tactic, she hoped he might just tell her if she asked nicely.

"Humans make me nauseous with their constant belief that the universe is like them, and only interested in one thing"

Ellie jolted a little at his use of the word human. _Am I still? _Ellie hadn't really thought about what she was in a while, this seemed as good a time as any.

Her thought process came to a shuddering halt.

Loki's upper arm was still firmly attached to his shoulder. Loki's elbow was still visable too. Following on from Loki's elbow was Loki's forearm and then... then there was her body. Ellie blinked, trying to add up what she was seeing in her head. Loki's hand was partially submerged in her chest. It looked like he had tried to punch her and gone too far forward. She looked up at him, his face close enough for her to feel his breath fluting over her face. His eyes were wide and Ellie could see now, they were a dense yet pale green.

Loki looked confused as he withdrew his hand. It was only now, as Ellie was falling to the ground without the support of Loki's arm that she saw he was holding a small blade, a dreadful moment of recognition flitted across her brain. The small blade was hers, secured to her belt and strapped to her thigh. Loki had managed to take it from her when he was circling her earlier, and she hadn't even felt it. It did however account for the goosebumps she felt earlier, she knew it wouldn't have been Loki's presence that aroused them. _Given his unattractiveness and all._

Ellie reached up and touched her chest. The knife had gone deep and would have punctured the heart, she would imagine. It would have punctured the heart and there would be blood everywhere. Right now she would be lying on the floor, her blood pumping out of her far too fast to put back in, she would have looked at Loki and he would have looked back down at her pathetic human form and smiled a horrible, smug smirk. That's how it would have gone, she imagined.

Instead, she touched her chest and felt the familiar tacky stickiness of her blood, not quite blood, not quite dust. A weird mixture of the two. She put her thumb and forefinger in front of her eyes and pressed them together, squeezing the blooddust inbetween her digits before pulling them apart. She had a rouge thought. _This is my favourite top._

"What are you?" Loki asked. His green eyes were alight with curiousity.

"I don't know"

"I meant to kill you, to push my fist deep inside you..." Even though his words were awful, there was something horrifically attractive in them. Ellie flushed with slight embarassment at this realisation. His voice grew in volume as Ellie stood up. Loki paused as he evaluated if she was going to launch herself at him in a retaliatory attack. She swayed on her feet for a second and then turned her face upwards to meet his eyes.

"... You are something interesting, Ellie"

Ellie turned to walk away. This was going to sting for a bit, and she wanted a lie down. It would take a while for the bone and skin to recover, and although she didn't feel much, it was enough to feel uncomfotable. Right now, she needed to get away from the smug bastard that had tried to punch a hole in her.

"Will you visit me again?" Loki called, not making any move to stop her leaving.

"Will you tell me what you want?" Ellie spoke carefully.

"We shall have to see"

**Ehhh. Did you like it?**


End file.
